Chapter 12
Raptor grinned at Troy as they jogged back across the deck. “That was your redhead?” he asked. “Fancy meeting her here.”
“I can’t believe I finally found her in the middle of a damn hijacking. Jesus. She kept her cool and held it together pretty well though. I’m impressed. My sisters would’ve flipped if they were ever held hostage like this. Damn. I’m just glad she’s okay.”
“She’s strong; that’s for damn sure. The admiral’s wife seemed to have had it worse. She was in a state of shock. It sounded like they threatened to rape her before the admiral gave them some bad codes. They’re searching for the one guy who jumped overboard. Logan’s on deck in case he comes back. I’m not sure about the small boat Evelyn thought she saw earlier.”
Troy shook his head, listening on his comms unit as Jackson gave them an update. Ethan confirmed that the explosive device was actually a fake. They had no need to send in bomb techs to disarm it. The other gunmen onboard had all been killed. Jackson had freed the captain in the control room. They were currently untying the rest of the men. If none required immediate medical attention, they could take the yacht right back to the pier rather than evacuate the remaining passengers to the second rescue boat.
“Roger that,” Raptor said into the comms channel. “Fantastic news that the explosives weren’t live. They’ll have a bomb squad sweep the boat to ensure nothing’s been hidden, but we received clearance to bring the yacht in to the pier.”
“Damn,” Troy said, pulling open the door. “You think they hid something on here?”
Raptor lifted a shoulder. “Anything’s possible. It’s a crime scene at any rate and will be thoroughly searched and documented. There’re bullet holes on deck, blood, and two missing NCIS agents. Not to mention the other hijacker.”
“What a clusterfuck,” Troy said, his gaze sweeping the area as they moved down the hall. “Let me know when the women make it to shore.”
“Will do. Caitlyn should be on dry land at any moment. And I found her cell phone on the deck. I gave it to one of the Navy guys on the rescue boat to give back to her.”
“You get her number?”
Raptor snorted. “Memorized it for you. She probably should lock her phone for safety reasons. I could’ve accessed anything on there. But at least you can contact her now. The other women will have to wait for their things to be processed and returned to them.”
“Appreciate it,” Troy said, nodding at his buddy. “Apparently she never saved my number in her phone.”
“So she says,” Raptor joked.
“Ouch,” Troy said. They walked into the cabin where Ethan and Grayson were untying the rest of the men. One had a bullet wound in his leg and was being tended to by the others. Several stood around talking to each other, and it sounded like a group who’d been freed was in the control room with Jackson and the captain.
“Admiral Rice,” Troy said with a nod as he and Raptor walked over.
The admiral reached out and shook both men’s hands. “Thank you, gentlemen. Grayson informed me that Evelyn was evacuated with the other women?”
“Yes, sir,” Raptor said. “She was shaken up but unharmed. I escorted her to the yacht’s deck myself. She and Caitlyn, your event planner, had been kept separately from the other women. We found and freed them. They should be getting off the rescue boat and into waiting ambulances shortly.”
The admiral’s fist clenched. “They threatened to rape my wife right there in front of me and the other men. I gave them some false codes but made it realistic enough to stall them. God damn it! They took her away, but—”
His voice cut off. Troy hadn’t spent much time around the admiral, but the stoic man was known to be calm and level-headed. It must’ve been hell watching the gunmen threaten his wife. To not know what happened to her while he was held captive himself.
Raptor nodded. “She’s okay, sir. Did Ghost update you? One of the gunmen jumped overboard and hasn’t been found yet.”
“The Pacific is damn cold this time of year to be in there long,” the admiral said with a frown. “And he hasn’t been found yet?”
“No, sir. The Coast Guard and Navy are searching for him, but even with the full moon, it’ll be difficult. No other vessels were seen in the water, so it’s unlikely he escaped.”
Troy frowned as he looked at the two men. “So all of this was to get the damn codes? That’s bullshit. Excuse my language, sir. Countless lives were put in harm’s way.”
The admiral blew out a sigh. “As you know, I’ve been the target of blackmail. Most of it is utter nonsense, but they seemed to think I’d give up highly classified intel. They knew I had access to codes to nuclear warheads on one of our ships, but damn. Those could be quickly changed if they fell into the wrong hands.”
“Unless they have someone inside one of the subs,” Raptor nodded.
Troy scrubbed a hand over his jaw. Damn. The only nuclear weapons the Navy currently had were aboard submarines. They hadn’t been used in the Surface Forces in years. What they intended to do with the codes was concerning. And wasn’t that the understatement of the century.
“How’d you trick them?”
